Demonic Affections
by MintIceTea
Summary: The whole thing started when Neuro said "I've got something to show you!" Or maybe even before that. It's hard to remember when she's sure she's got brain damage.
1. Chapter 1

The whole thing came as a surprise really. Yako later compared it to being struck by a meteor the way it practically fell out of the sky.

The ceiling actually.

And if she was being completely honest she had about two seconds of warning before hand when her demon partner reached up to grab the not-quite-so-nondescript rope hanging from the tiles above. But two seconds didn't give her enough time to move before he yanked on the rope, opening a trap door and letting a ladder smack her painfully in the occipital. Neuro watched her with a smug grin as she blinked the tears away.

"I made a home for you, Vermin!" He exclaimed proudly when her frown was directed towards him once more. Her eyes traveled warily up the ladder to the darkness above. Skittering and wailing made her squint suspiciously.

"Thanks Neuro, but I'm fine. I've got my own apartment, remember?"

"Oh I do remember, but I wanted to make sure you have another room in case something…happens…to your place of residence." His smile was so sweet Yako felt nauseous

"Please," she sighed in resignation, "if you're going to destroy my place at least let me grab my menu collection first."

"It's up there!" Neuro pointed his middle finger up towards the darkness.

Yako took a deep breath; counted to twenty, then cautiously put her foot on the lowest rung of the ladder. "Neuro, I had a coupon for Coco-Ichi in there that expires tomorrow. I'm going to go get it, and you will drag my half-dead and mauled corpse to their nearest location so I can have my final meal, okay?"

"So dramatic," Neuro tsked.

"Promise me!"

With a heavy sigh and gratuitous eye rolling he promised she'd have her last bowl of curry even if he had to carry her there. He had been infuriatingly self-satisfied since her faux-pas last week and Yako hadn't been able to deduce why. And if this flirtation with death would give her some kind of explanation it'd be worth it.

Or at least she hoped.

She climbed slowly, trying to resist the force of his claws on her bum, pushing her upwards. "Geez, Neuro! I'm moving, let go of me!"

"Nope!" She couldn't see him, but she knew that was the voice that went with his 'innocent' smile. "Sensei has to see what I've done! Then we can go out for the drink you promised me!"

"We already had drinks last week!" She stopped just short of her head clearing the hole in the ceiling to peer down at him.

He pursed his lips in what may have been a pout. "That doesn't count, Ringworm, you brought your boyfriend." His face suddenly brightened, "but this time he won't be bothering us!"

"Neuro," Yako's voice began to rise in panic, "what did you do to Higuchi-eeek!" With a shove Neuro sent her sprawling into the attic space she didn't know they had. When she cautiously opened her eyes she was pleased to see no toxic goo, or rotting corpses, not even a collection of eyeball-bugs.

What she found instead was what could only be described as a nest. But big enough for a person (Yako refused to acknowledge it was big enough for two). The outer ring of the nest was made from huge black vines with long thorns that could easily rip her to shreds. The inner ring of the nest though, was full of blankets and pillows, and alarmingly Yako recognized all of her own bedding as well as a few of the spare blankets from her mom's place. Even her childhood teddy bear was sitting proudly in the center of the nest, though Yako wasn't sure what she thought about the stuffed horns that had been lovingly sewed to his head.

"Neuro?" She turned to see him peering at her from the hole. "What the hell is this?"

"I thought you had enough brain cells left to figure it out. I made you a nest. It's much better than that lousy apartment you had. It was so easy to break into even morons could do it. And it was drafty. And the doorman tried to look up your skirt." Neuro reported with a slightly malicious grin. Yako's head swam

"Um," she glanced between him and the…_nest_. "You aren't going to, uh, join me in it, are you?" Yako would remain in denial that her voice squeaked at the end.

Neuro blinked at her. Their eyes met and held and surprisingly it wasn't uncomfortable. After a moment he ducked back out of sight leaving her with the word: "No."

Yako sat back on her heels, gathering her stuffed bear into her arms absently. Finally able to force a shaky air full into her lungs she relaxed. When she was able to look around the room with clear eyes, it actually wasn't too bad. Not that she really _wanted_ to live right above where she worked. But it was dark and cozy, and to be honest at the end of the day and after dinner all Yako wanted to do was sleep anyway.

She'd give it a week or so. If this weird nest-attic-bedroom didn't work out she'd go out apartment hunting. Yako turned to go back down the ladder only to be stopped when Neuro once again popped his head up through the hole. "Did I say 'no'? Slip of the tongue. What I meant was 'not yet'." He grinned at her suddenly pale face.

She swallowed and closed her eyes. Never mind. She'd start looking at apartments today.


	2. Chapter 2

After five days of searching, Yako had managed to find an apartment. A bit closer to the office than she would like, but every time she looked further Neuro would sabotage the process somehow. The one place she did manage to get was even smaller than the office's attic space. But it was hers and it was separate and…

Yako stared from where she stood in the doorway. It was back.

The nest that is. The nest that Neuro had built. He had apparently moved it from the office to take over her new apartment.

Well shit.

_Think positive._ She knew that the nest, from the few night she slept in it (alone! Thank you very much!), was extremely comfortable. And it wasn't like she expected to have a place that was demon-proof anyway. (Probably the only place in the universe Neuro couldn't get into would be beyond the Pearly Gates.) So if all he had done so far was to provide her with a place to rest then she'd be thankful.

Now to cross her fingers and hope that was all that he had done.

With a sigh she hug her bag on one of the protruding thorns, and slipped off her jacket to hang it on another. She had met up with some of her old school friends for dinner; so she absently went through her evening routine before falling into the nest to sleep.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow she'd talk to Neuro about the nest situation.

Hopefully.

* * *

><p>The next morning Yako awoke to fingers combing through her hair, and for a brief, disorientating moment she thought it was her mother waking her up for school. But the illusion ended when there was a sharp <em>yank!<em> against her scalp.

She sat up and almost based foreheads with Neuro.

"Morning, Louse!" he grinned, reaching out again to smooth down her hair.

"What are you doing?" She scooted backwards, yelping when her shoulder hit one of the spikes in her nest.

"We've got a case!" Neuro announced, sitting across the nest from her. He was dressed in his usual suit, but the jacket and shoes seemed to be missing. Yako tried not to focus on how…casual he looked, almost… approachable.

Well. Tried being the keyword.

And maybe it was just part of his demonic scheming. Because she let her guard down the tiniest bit and pushed his odd wake-up call to the back of her mind.

"Why didn't you just call me then?" Yako asked, yawning and stretching now that the adrenaline was dissipating. Neuro's gaze dropped down as she stretched before he turned an innocent look back up.

"Because this case requires a certain dress code." He gestured to the garment bag hanging by her front door. "Didn't you say we're partners now? I'm assisting you in preparing."

"Okay…" Yako hummed, staring at him suspiciously. "In what ways are you assisting me?"

Neuro hummed back mimicking her and she rolled her eyes. He watched her climb out of the nest with no further commentary and Yako retreated into the bathroom with the mysterious outfit to prepare for her day.

He better be "assisting" by making sure she has a proper breakfast before work.

* * *

><p>When Yako emerged she was pleasantly surprised to find that Neuro had not destroyed her apartment but had apparently brought her a fast-food breakfast. She eyed the two bulging paper bags on the table with longing. She knew Neuro well enough that there was only a 5050 chance that there was actually eatable food in the bag.

"Breakfast to go?" She questioned. Neuro was standing at her dressing, investigating her meager collection of beauty supplies.

"Sit down and eat, you heathen," he replied with a smirk. "Our ride will find traffic rather…troublesome today."

"What did you do to Godai's car?"

A tube of mascara hitting her forehead served as a reminder not to question Neuro and Godai's relationship. At least not when transportation was involved.

Suddenly determined to enjoy her junk food breakfast Yako sat down at her tiny table and began to eat.

She had only gotten about halfway through when she felt Neuro standing behind her. She made to turn to face him but a clawed grip on her scalp stopped her. "Stay still."

She gulped down her mouthful of food. "I'm not finished though!"

"By all means keep stuffing your face, but keep the rest of your head still or I will disconnect the two." Neuro commanded, sounding rather cheerful. His lightened his painful grip and, _**very**_ disconcertingly, began to comb his fingers through her hair.

"What are you doing?"

She could _hear_ his grin. "Styling."

"W-why are you styling my hair?" She yelped as something cold and damp touched her scalp. "And what are you putting in it?"

"Because it looked like something a hell-beast vomited after a ten-day feeding frenzy. And I'm using mousse, but I can use this disembodied hand I found as a clip if you'd prefer it up." He sounded so casual about it that Yako shuddered. It felt _nice_ having him touch her hair.

She fully acknowledged that it would probably end up horrendous by the end, but except for the occasional scratches of his claws it was nearly enjoyable.

Nearly.

"You're being nice." Yako muttered. For as odd as his behavior was she had worked with him long enough to realize the meaning underneath. The suit jacket and skirt he brought her was something out of her own closet, something she had learned not to mention after the first few times he had brought her a "uniform".

"What? But Sensei!" Neuro intoned, using his simpering kiss-ass voice. "Can I not prove my eternal devotion by assisting you in your preparation for our day of mystery solving?"

"No."

"Then how shall I prove the level of my…affection, sensei?" He had dropped the playful, facetious tone, and the deep purr he adopted made her shiver.

"I don't know!" Finished with her meal she squirmed out from his touch. She stood and turned to face him, he was smiling at her, and it wasn't his facetious 'innocent' smile either. The strand of hair accidentally sheered by him tossing scissors at her hadn't stayed in place, falling across her face when she turned. He reached out to tuck it back behind her ear.

She felt frozen in place by his gaze on her. He only smirked and stroked her hair one last time before turning suddenly and heading towards the door.

"Let's go. I'm salivating for this mystery."

Yako tried to convince herself that the reason her heart was pounding was because he _must_ have something planned.

Tried being the keyword.


	3. Chapter 3

Neuro had always been an odd one back in hell. It was quite a scandal about the courts, his immense hunger for mysteries; his absolute obsession with them.

Not that Neuro had ever cared what the other demons thought. His ranking and power put him head and shoulders above them anyway. Scum.

But despite his loathing for the ghoulish and proper ways of hell – there's a specific way you're expected to wreak havoc amongst humans, you know, what a waste of time - there was one tradition he's determined to follow by the books.

The matter of courtship.

Unfortunately, bubbling pits full of boiling tar and the screaming of the damned were out of reach.

So he settled for the next best thing.

"Is there a mystery here? Or is the only mystery why you taking me out for ice cream? Because if that's the case it's gonna have to remain unsolved, because I don't wanna know." Yako said as she watched the girl behind the counter add a fifth scoop to her cone.

Neuro snorted. In his compromise of courtship customs he had ordered a small cone of death-by-chocolate. It was the most tolerable of human flavors. And though it was a waste of energy to consume the damned thing, it was… enjoyable to watch Yako savor hers.

Humans were interesting creatures. Their crimes so varied with motive, and their mating habits so unpredictable. He was moving fast by demon standards, but then they had all eternity to waste, but by human opinions he was probably being a bit obtuse.

Ah, that was how he liked it though. He liked them to think him dull and slow. Especially Yako, she had known him long enough to realize it was all a façade and it made her so delightfully uneasy.

Her begrudging reaction to his styling of her hair was utterly wonderful. He would have to keep that in mind, she didn't mind after her original discomfort. And though she complained quietly and often, she never made any attempt to replace the nest he had lovingly crafted for her. (The weekend he disappeared to Aokigahara to gather branches was absolutely worth it).

"You're staring, vermin." He murmured, giving her a sly, slow smile. Which evolved into a full blown grin when she blushed scarlet. "Finally surrendering to my dashing good looks?"

"I-I…" She took another huge bite of her ice cream, refusing to look at him.

"You what?" He chucked the remains of his cone over his shoulder, leaving forward across the table, fingers laced.

"I don't know what you're up to," she admitted with a squinting glare.

He grinned. "Of course you don't, you're simple minded, still."

"Hey that's-wait, is this a date? Another one?" Yako's offended face faded in her long-coming realization.

"Bravo, that's the master detective!" He stood and smirked down at her. "And told you, the other one didn't count. This is our first date, sen-sei." He sang the last bit, mockingly.

"F-first date?" She gulped.

"Oh yes, sensei!" He gave her a smile and blush of pure innocence, before tugging her up to stand before her. "And as such I will decline your brutish advances, and offer a decorous kiss in trade."

"Brutish? Neuro –" He cut her off by bending down and pressing a gentle kiss to her lips. A proper compromise for this strange courtship and their quite public location. He licked his lips as he straightened, tasting the nightmarish flavor combination of her treat.

She blinked at him looking perplexed, licking her own lips and he grinned.

"I understand that I should accompany you home in your customs," he began softly. "According to my customs I should hurl you into the tar pits and leave. If you made it out alive we would move forward." He looked around disdainfully.

"No tar." Yako offered, looking a bit relieved.

"I'm not walking you home," Neuro announced, before settling for another compromise. Tripping her and vanishing before she picked herself up.

All in all, he thought that it went rather well.

Yako hated to admit it, but she had been constantly reliving the previous afternoon. A date! It put all his weird behaviors into perspective, well, in a sense. She was no less concerned, but at least he seemed to be considering her human nature.

Thank god there were no tar pits nearby.

She was in such a state that even Godai questioned it while he was over with more papers for Neuro. She waved him off at the time, but once Neuro had gone off on a hunch she ventured to ask about the demon himself.

"Hey, Godai… do you think that Neuro looks more…." Yako struggled for a word for a moment, chewing thoughtfully. "Handsome lately?"

Godai shuddered and pulled out his switch blade, holding it to his stomach. "If you say one more word I fucking swear I will kill myself and die with honor knowing that I never spoke one fucking word about that demon's appearance."

Yako needed more girlfriends.

"Well, maybe not handsome then." She backtracked. "More like, I mean, doesn't his hair seem brighter? And not just after he's eaten."

"I'm not gonna fucking answer! And it's weird that you're noticing that."

"He took me on a date yesterday—"

"I'll do it! I'll kill myself right now!"

"Oh never mind."

Yako would have to find someone else to discuss her dating life with.

Oh god. Her dating life. Her romantic life.

She was dating her demonic employer.

Oh shit.


End file.
